Two More Berks Families Shredded by ICE
In July, two Berks families were torn apart by ICE; beloved fathers and daughters taken at gunpoint and detained far from home. Juliana is an artist and photographer/videographer who works with GoggleWorks and other Berks community organizations. Camila formerly worked at Centro Hispano providing digital literacy classes to seniors and recently began working at the Berks County Office of Aging. They were leaving for vacation, thinking they had nothing to fear because they had followed the rules. But that didn't stop ICE from arresting Juliana, Camila, and their fathers at Newark airport and putting them in Delaney Hall, a for-profit detention center run by the GEO Group.
There is a big need for continued support for these two families, especially with the cost of legal fees and other expenses now that they are separated and have lost income due to the detentions. Please consider donation to each of these families in need.
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Hundreds of Berks Countians were shocked to learn that families they knew and loved would be subject to this treatment. They assumed -- as did Juliana, Camila and their families -- that they were protected from detention because they had documentation authorizing their employment and have an immigration case pending. Nevertheless, they were apprehended at Newark airport using surveillance technology we are only beginning to understand.
This is our new reality under Trump regime. We can be shocked that Juliana, Camila and their fathers were taken because they were doing what the law asked of them. But ICE no longer cares if you have paperwork.
ICE takes asylum applicants, victims of crime, trafficking survivors, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status beneficiaries, Dreamers, and persons with family-based green cards pending. They also take those who never had the opportunity to obtain a visa, were prevented by circumstances from filing an application on time, missed hearings because of fear or misinformation, or simply have no meaningful pathway under our current immigration laws. They, too, deserve dignity, due process, and the opportunity to live free from unnecessary detention and family separation.
BOW knows all too well that it can't take on ICE by itself. What we can do is demand that Berks County stop any and all collaboration with this murderous organization. Please join us in the fight.
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